RISING POPULATION, RISING WATER DEMAND San Antonio Water System officials said a diversified water supply and conservation measures will help to offset projected increases in population and water demand across the SAWS service area.
Projected
3.3M
150 gal.
350K
1M 1.5M 2M 2.5M 3M 3.5M
324K
124 gal.
2.8M
2.6M
120 gal.
291K
98 gal.
3.1M
92 gal.
300K
2.7M
267K
308K
255K
90 gal.
102 gal. (goal)
95 gal.
280K
88 gal.
250K
60 gal.
1.43M
0 gal.
0M
0K
SOURCE: SAN ANTONIO WATER SYSTEM/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER Years 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070
Years 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070
Years 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070
Draft plan update produced: summer/fall Public comment on draft plan: summer/fall TIME FOR PLANNING The San Antonio Water System updates its long-range water management plan every five years and will have its latest update complete by the end of this year. SAWS board meeting briefings: March-end of year
SAWS board considers final plan update: end of year
2022
2023
Public engagement: Throughout plan development
SOURCE: SAN ANTONIO WATER SYSTEM/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
been more expensive than using the water we already have efficiently.” Guz also said water conservation is key in properly managing water supplies because everyone, from the average residential user and business customers to the SAWS itself, can do their part to consume water more effi- ciently, even in a time of drought-in- duced water use rules. Steven Siebert, SAWS water resource project coordinator, called conserva- tion a cornerstone of this year’s water management plan. “The less water we’re using, the more water we’re conserving, and that pushes out the need for additional sup- plies,” Siebert said. Diversewater resources In 1998, SAWS debuted a long-range management plan and followed up with updates in 2005, 2009 and 2012, with the latter plan incorporating both the Edwards Aquifer Habitat Conserva- tion Plan and assets from the dissolu- tion of the Bexar Metropolitan Water District. According to the management plan approved in 2017, SAWS has reduced its reliance on the Edwards Aquifer, which was 100% in 1995, to 51.2%. This, SAWS officials said, has been achieved through several water supply projects, including the launch of the
SAWS’ virtual presentations on the management plan update. Siebert described water conserva- tion as “the first new source” of water for the SAWS. “It’s the water that we don’t use today that’s available for use tomor- row,” he said. Siebert said the total SAWS user con- sumption rate was 225 gallons per per- son per day in 1982; that number has since fallen by 51% to date. SAWS officials said conservation ini- tiatives, such as WaterSaver coupons and rebates for residential and com- mercial customers, have also proven successful over time. According to the 2017 plan, SAWS customers used the utility’s WaterSaver coupons to replace more than 2 million square feet of turf grass with drought-tolerant landscap- ing between 2015 and 2017. “This community has really embraced conservation and has taken advantage of conservation programs that [the] SAWS offers,” he said. The 2017 management plan said goals to further cut per-user daily con- sumption will help to largely offset projected increases in water demand that coincide with continued popula- tion growth. Based upon conservation goals, the SAWS projects total annual water demand will increase by 20,000 acre-feet between 2025 and 2040.
H2Oaks brackish water desalination plant in Elmendorf, Texas, and the 142- mile Vista Ridge pipeline. The latter project initially drew crit- icism from environmentalists worried about the $900 million project’s eco- logical effects and from well owners in Burleson and Lee counties con- cerned about drawdowns in their water sources where the Vista Ridge pipeline originates. Siebert said the utility has diversified its supplies in other ways in the last 20 years, including creating the Twin Oaks Aquifer Storage and Recovery facility that is able to store more than 39 billion gallons of excess Edwards Aquifer drinking water. Siebert also said the SAWS has a water recycling system that recycles more than 37,100 acre-feet of water yearly, accounting for 13% of San Anto- nio’s total available water supply. Conservation’s role With the updated plan, the SAWS aims to further reduce residential user consumption to 55 gallons per person per day and decrease total customer consumption to 88 gallons per cus- tomer per day—both by 2070. The SAWS recorded total user con- sumption—residential, commercial and industrial—at 111 gallons per per- son per day in 2021, according to the
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2020U.S. Census to 3.3million by 2070. With the rise in population, local water demand, too, is projected to increase accordingly to 324,000 acre- feet per year by 2070. One acre-foot is equal to 326,000 gallons of water. SAWS officials also project that if total water consumption were to remain above 124 gallons per person per day through 2070, the utilitywould see an additional 132,000 acre-feet in total local water demand by 2070. SAWS Water Conservation Director Karen Guz said the utility has been gathering public input via emails, an online survey, and in-person and vir- tual meetings as part of the planning update process, which began in March and is expected to be complete by the end of this year. Guz called the plan crucial because it analyzes the San Antonio area’s cur- rent and future water needs as well as population and development growth projections, climate change and the timing of potential water sources. “In the big picture, conservation is a great business proposition for our community, and I say that because it’s the least expensive way to make more water available to a growing popula- tion,” Guz said. “Every option that our community has had for 20 years has
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